For Crying Out Loud

A couple that I was seeing in therapy came in last week. They were beaming at each other in the waiting room. I couldn’t wait to find out what had shifted.

After the wife’s discovery of breast cancer and subsequent surgery six months ago, they had become quite distant from one another—more like roommates than husband and wife. The surgery was highly successful and she was in complete remission but they hadn’t faced their fears and her feelings about her body being different. The husband explained that they had had a breakthrough the previous weekend. They had cried deeply with one another. He said, “It was like the clearing of the sky after a thunderstorm!”

Don MacMannis, Ph.D. is a psychologist, author and award-winning PBS songwriter. His research-based songs and activities for children to boost social and emotional skills is at http://kidseps.com/.